On this day, in 1825....

.... David Douglas, botanist & plant collector (1799-1834) first set foot in the Pacific NorthWest, at the mouth of the Columbia River. His journal records:

April 8th 1825, I went on shore on Cape Disappointment. Constant heavy rain, cold, thermometer 47deg.

One half of the Wilburys is in Oregon, launching the film "Finding David Douglas" at the World Forestry Centre, Portland. Guess what the weather was like 185 years later. Yep; you got it.

Wilma Wilbury remains at home and, counter-intuitively, has taken the opportunity to remove a Douglas introduction from the garden.


Sitka Spruce are a mainstay of the UK forestry industry but are NBG at all when planted too close to the house by the previous owner and left to grow , and grow, and grow. The garden looks better already, I'm told.